IntroductionI
have always pushed my receivers and AV preamps to the limit in terms of
inputs. Having almost every modern videogame system imaginable, an HD
PVR, a DVD player, a few VCRs, an Onkyo Nettunes receiver, a DAT
player, a High-8 video camera and a Sirius Satellite receiver, among
others, as source components, I have yet to find a receiver or AV
preamp that fully accepts every single input I throw at it without
compromising somewhere. That is, until I discovered Integra’s
top-of-the-line DTR-10.5 receiver which starts at $3,800. The
connection possibilities are almost endless and the amount of sound
formats and technologies on the DTR-10.5 are unbelievable. From the
high-quality 192 kHz/24-bit DACs to almost every DTS and Dolby Digital
format known to man and with Integra’s Nettunes Internet radio music
server playback capabilities built in, I believe this 7.1-capable
receiver with THX®Surround EX™ and THX®Certified Ultra2 can be the core
of a $10,000 to $30,000 home theater system.

Integra has endeared itself to the ever-growing and very important custom installer market with their new “Build To Order”
concept (anyone can try it out with no obligation). Much like a fast
food restaurant that prides itself on not making your food until you
place your order, Integra allows you to custom order your DTR-10.5
online, using a very slick interface. The back panel of a base model
DTR-10.5 is listed on the screen and the user can add or remove cards
from the back panel at the click of a button, much like customizing
options on a computer at Apple.com or Dell.com. As the different cards
are selected, the picture onscreen updates and you can see where the
cards will be added. This proved to be very valuable to me even before
my finished receiver arrived, as I was able to know in advance what my
DTR-10.5 would look like. This allowed me to arrange my AV cabinet
accordingly to have the cleanest cabling set-up possible when I added
the DTR-10.5.

Unless
you are absolutely certain what your home theater system is going to
need as far as inputs and outputs are concerned, both Integra and I
recommend that you allow your AV retailer to configure your DTR-10.5.
You’d hate to miss something that you should have added or end up
spending more money than you needed to, so it’s best to discuss your
particular needs both immediate and long-term with your installer, then
have them place the order. Of course, a receiver of this caliber
contains an RS-232 control port as part of its standard makeup, as well
as a 12-volt trigger, a built-in 120v AC outlet, a powerful AM/FM tuner
and pre-outs for using an external amplifier.

The DTR-10.5
is a card-based receiver that allows for upgradeability, making it much
more “future-proof” than most receivers today. The layout of the back
reminded me specifically of some much more expensive pieces, like
Meridian’s 800 and Mark Levinson’s No. 40 AV preamp. Everything is laid
out logically and the gold connectors give the back of the DTR-10.5 an
elegant look. The cards are secured in place by flush-mount hex screws
and a supplied Allen wrench makes it very easy to add and remove cards.
Flat black blank panels fill in any empty card slots to prevent dust
and debris from entering the unit.

The
chassis of the DTR-10.5 is fairly sizable at 17 and 1/8 inches wide,
eight and 11/16 inches tall and 18 and 15/16 inches deep, weighing 70.8
pounds in its base configuration. The matte black finish and the
quality build of the case give you a sense that this is a quality piece
of AV gear, not a run-of-the-mill Japanese receiver. Loaded to the
gills with all of the available card options, the receiver does not
weigh much more than in its base configuration. I found that
positioning it in the center of my equipment rack allowed me to route
cables up, down and sideways for the cleanest install possible.

In
its standard configuration, the DTR-10.5 comes with a digital audio
module, an analog audio module, a video module and an AM/FM tuner
module. This configuration provides six optical audio ins, two optical
audio outs, three component video ins, one component video out, six
S-Video ins and two S-Video outs. Two sets of speaker terminals for a
primary zone and secondary zone run across the bottom of the back panel
and pre-outs for a third zone are available as well. The flip-down
panel in the front allows for headphones to be plugged in, as well as
an extra video input for the easy addition of a non-permanent videogame
system or video camera. The headphone input automatically cuts off the
main speakers and features Dolby® Headphone technology that simulates
surround sound on a stereo pair of headphones. I have found the
headphones to be a great option while listening late at night. In my
home, I often use headphones while riding an exercise bike. However,
others in my household want to watch the same movie and listen through
the speakers. At first I did not think I would be able to grant their
requests, however by using the Zone 2 line output and an external
headphone preamp, the DTR-10.5 is able to output sound through the main
speakers via Zone 1 and the headphones via Zone 2.

Configuration and Set-up
Five blank panels are available on the back of the stock DTR-10.5.
Since I have so many different sources, I loaded the DTR-10.5 up with
the iLINK module, the Net-Tune Ethernet module, the RCA component
module, the multi-channel and AES/EBU module and, most importantly, the
HDMI module for two in/one out HDMI video switching. The only option
that I did not choose was the BNC-type connector component video card.
For users with a video projector that does not have a DVI or HDMI
input, this would be the best-quality option. With all of these cards,
it brought the retail price of the system tested here to $4,950.

The
build quality of the rear panel is also topnotch and, other than the
speaker terminal knobs that I felt were a bit small, I was very
impressed with everything about the receiver cosmetically. I believe
the reasons that the speaker wire terminals are not as robust as those
of other receivers or amps I have used in the past is the fact that the
engineers at Integra had to fit 28 of them on the back panel. With the
smaller, thinner knobs, there is room for the other important
components. I still had no problem connecting my beefy Ultralink
speaker wire to the connectors, so I find this a very minor thing in an
otherwise extremely elegant and well-crafted piece.

The
onscreen menus for setting up the inputs, outputs and speaker levels
and distances on the DTR-10.5 were amongst the most intuitive I have
ever used. I recommend using your TV monitor at first, until you are
familiar with the menu trees in this multi-level set-up. However, once
I learned the logic of the set-up menus, I was able to use the smaller
text display on the face of the receiver if I had to quickly adjust
something and didn’t want to wait for my projection screen TV to fire
up. The option of running a 7.1 speaker set-up is available on the
DTR-10.5, as is the capability of running a total of three audio zones.
My theater only has enough speakers for a 5.1 set-up, so I was not able
to take advantage of all of the surround sound options. I set the
DTR-10.5 up to automatically detect the sound format on the disc and
use whatever it reads from the source. DTS discs automatically
triggered the receiver to decode the DTS signal, as it does with Dolby
Digital. If you have room in your system for the required amount of
speakers, you will be able to enjoy the 6.1 with DTS ES 96/25 or 7.1
with Dolby Pro-Logic IIx.

To
switch between all of the video game systems, VCRs and other video
sources in my system via the HDMI card, the DTR-10.5 features a Si504
deinterlacing chip from Silicon Image. There are menu settings in the
receiver that allow Composite, S-Video and 480i component video to be
upconverted to 480p HDMI. If your video display is HDMI you'll want to
use this function to streamline your video switching, allowing you to
keep your display on the digital input at all times. Previous to this,
I had to toggle between the HDMI input on my TV when watching DVDs and
Satellite to the analog video inputs for my other non HDMI sources.

The impressive $2,500 DPS-10.5 universal player from Integra is a
perfect match for the DTR-10.5, as they are able to connect via iLINK
for fully digital playback of 5.1 surround sound music in DVD-Audio and
SACD. The 5.1 analog outputs on the DVD player and the 5.1 analog input
card on the receiver could be used as well, but I wanted to eliminate
the digital to analog and analog to digital steps to keep the audio
signal as pure as possible. With a direct digital connection for
multi-channel audio and the direct digital HDMI video connection for
the DVD player and HD Satellite receiver, you can truly step into the
digital domain with the DTR-10.5 and DPS-10.5 combo.

The Movies
For
those of you who have not seen a DVD player with an internal video
processor and an HDMI output that allows for a direct digital
connection to a high-quality HDTV, get ready to be blown away. Video
purists would probably skip the video switching stage in the DTR-10.5,
but after running my HDMI signal straight from my satellite receiver to
my TV for almost a half a year, I didn’t see any noticeable drop in
picture quality with the DTR-10.5 in the loop and the convenience of
being able to switch right through the receiver far outweighed any
miniscule drop in picture quality that might result from this step. A
video calibrator may be able to detect some kind of compression on the
signal as it is switched through the DTR-10.5, but my eye was not able
to detect any change in the image, even when literally A/B-ing the
system while watching DVDs and HD programming from my Dish Network 921
HD PVR.

“Anchorman:
The Legend of Ron Burgundy” (Universal Studios Home Video), starring
Will Ferrell, is a comedic throwback set in 1970s San Diego and is
filled with bright-colored, retro clothing as well as panoramic flybys
of the city and a soulful soundtrack. As the news copter flies by in
the opening scene, the golden hues of the setting sun reflecting off
the buildings came to life. The marriage of the DPS-10.5 and the
DTR-10.5 provided a picture that was smoother and more filmlike than
the component output of the Adcom DVD player and AV Preamp combo that I
had in my system before the Integra set-up. These comparably-priced
systems are both excellent performers, but having the digital HDMI
connection with the video up-conversion on the Integra set-up made for
a spectacular filmlike image.

As the Hall and Oates
classic “She’s Gone” plays while Ron Burgundy mourns the loss of his
romantic interest Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate), who has
dumped him and become the new lead anchor on the local news, the power
of the DTR-10.5’s 150 watts per channel amplifier came through loud,
clear and detailed. Ferrell’s brilliantly over-the-top dialog with his
cheesy ‘70s news anchorman voice was crystal clear and full-bodied. The
Energy Connoisseur speaker system in my system didn’t seem to miss the
extra power of the Anthem or Adcom amps that I was running in the
system prior to auditioning the Integra DTR-10.5.

Without
turning this into a DVD player review, I wanted to see how well the DVD
up-conversion that reportedly makes a DVD look like HDTV would work. I
took the most recent widescreen release of “Pulp Fiction” (Miramax Home
Entertainment) and compared it to the HDTV version that was recorded in
720P from HBO-HD on my Dish Network HD PVR. There were small black bars
on the top and bottom of the DVD version because of the theatrical
aspect ratio of the DVD release. On the HD version, the picture filled
my entire 16x9 aspect ratio screen. Movie purists would probably prefer
the DVD version in order to preserve the original theatrical aspect
ratio, but what I was really interested in seeing was whether the
receiver and DVD player would work together to produce a picture that
was competitive with the HD version. With the HDMI connection on the
receiver being used in concert with the Integra DVD player, the picture
was a touch darker and had higher contrast than the HD version, but the
amount of detail, from the wet Jheri curls of Samuel L. Jackson’s
character Jules, to the smoke from the end of Bruce Willis’ gun as he
shoots John Travolta, fresh off the toilet, was so close to the HD
version that I was amazed. I’m sure HD-DVD or Blu-ray will look better,
but in the meantime, I now have a virtual wall full of HD-DVDs at my
finger tips with the Integra system in my theater. This makes a very
compelling argument to buy a matched Integra player and receiver.

The MusicWith
the Integra universal player in the loop, I was like a kid in a candy
store standing in front of my music collection. I was going to get to
hear the first purely digital 5.1 audio connection in my theater.
Beginning with the Miles Davis Tribute SACD 4 Generations of Miles
(Chesky Records), my room came alive with a new level of quality and
crispness that I did not have when using the 5.1 analog connection on
my Adcom set-up. On the track “There Is No Greater Love,” the
saxophone, always a very complex-sounding instrument that can make or
break a live jazz recording, had more depth and body than when it was
routed through my system previously with the digital to analog and
analog to digital conversion clouding things up.

Being a
pure digital signal did not mean this surround sound mix lacked warmth.
Every instrument, most notably the drums and sax, had more clarity in
all frequencies and the bass had more body, making up for the slight
drop in power when moving from a separate amp to the internal 150 watts
per channel in the DTR-10.5.

DVD-Audio
is still my favorite-sounding audio format and Queen’s “Dragon Attack”
from the DTS DVD-Audio release of The Game (DTS Entertainment) always
provides some kick-ass rock in surround to really give your speakers a
workout. Like the Miles Davis track, I felt a sense of added detail and
control in the music using the direct digital iLINK connection. The
slight drop in body from using the less powerful amplifier in the
Integra receiver was easily compensated for by upping the output of my
Energy subwoofer and giving the midrange a slight boost in the easy to
use menus of the DTR-10.5. Freddy Mercury’s signature vocals and Brian
May’s unique guitar tone were enveloping me with much detail and
smoothness. The only place I have heard this track sound better is in
AVRev.com publisher Jerry Del Colliano’s reference theater and his
system tops the $250,000 price point.

Internet Radio and Music Server
Having
already auditioned and raved about Integra’s stand-alone Nettunes unit,
I was pleasantly surprised that this was an option on the DTR-10.5. It
was a no-brainer for me to add this card, which has an Ethernet
connection for the back of the receiver, freeing up even more space in
my equipment rack. A wireless option is not yet available, but I had
the foresight to actually prewire two Cat 5 connections to my home
theater area from the central router in the master bedroom closet of my
home. Although I already had experience with the Nettunes software, it
had been over a year since I had last set up this system from scratch
and, as before, it was very simple to do with even a vestigial
knowledge of computer networking. Once I had it up and running, I was
able to access all of the tracks on my PC laptop computer, which is
connected to my main 160-gig hard drive where I store most of the rips
I’ve done of my personal CD collection. The files are played back in
stereo, of course, as are the Internet radio stations. I found that I
was able to select Internet radio stations by not only genre of music,
but by country. Want some German oompah music or African tribal music?
It’s at your fingertips with the DTR-10.5, as long as you have an
active connection to the Internet. I did find the display on the face
of the DTR-10.5 to be a little small and less detailed for operating
the Nettunes, compared to the stand-alone Nettunes unit, but the
onscreen display can be used if you want to turn your TV on.

The Downside
For ultimate balls-to-the-wall home theater action, there are many who
are still going to want to use a separate amplifier. I found the
internal amps to be more than adequate for my smaller home theater, but
I did lose some punch I had gotten from the Adcom and Anthem separate
systems that I had installed before the Integra. Of course, you can use
a separate amp, but a sizeable chunk of what you are paying for in the
base model of the DTR-10.5 is for the internal amplification. Integra's
ultra-high-end line Integra Research makes a separate system in their
RDC-7.1 AV preamp with HDMI switching but it is in a higher price
category and you'd want to to pair it with an amplifier like the
RDA-7.1, also from Integra Research. You’ll just need to decide for
yourself if the 150 Watts x seven channels (eight ohm, 20 Hz - 20 KHz)
is enough for your speakers. It was for my system and the amount of
features and inputs easily outweighed this small compromise in power.

Conclusion
I
looked high and low to find faults with the DTR-10.5 and I’m coming up
empty. This baby fit so nicely into my rack and was so easy to set up
that I was up and running in literally 10 minutes. It has every single
input I needed, with a bundle of video and audio connections to spare.
When combined with the DPS-10.5 universal player, I have the
best-looking DVD picture that has ever graced my TV screen.

Although it may be considered expensive by most Japanese consumer
electronics standards, the ala carte nature of the DTR-10.5 actually
makes this receiver a great value. You only pay for what you need and
the fact that it’s expandable and upgradeable in the future ensures
that you’ll be able to have the latest and greatest connection options,
as well as the newest sound formats at your fingertips.

If
your current receiver or AV preamp still has room to spare on the back
and you don’t need HDMI switching, you probably won’t need to pop for a
piece like the DTR-10.5. I had filled up my previous receivers and AV
preamps, so the DTR-10.5 was the best addition to my theater since
adding my big-screen HD-ILA TV. I can’t think of a better piece for my
mid-level home theater system and, if you demand a lot from a receiver
like I do, the DTR-10.5 could be just the piece you need. If you wanted
to make a case that this was the best home theater receiver ever built,
I wouldn’t give you much of an argument.